Step 1 (technically step 9 - replacing the base plate) Apparently one of my screws was a micron or two smaller than the others. This screw belongs to the hole above the optical drive, which is also apparently a couple of microns smaller than the others. It took seven attempts to figure which screw had originally been in that hole; all the other screws were too large, but fitted perfectly everywhere else.

It might be a matter of how the screws are driven in, and not that they're slightly different sizes. When I reassembled my MacBook, a couple of the screws, including the one over the optical drive you mention, were hard to drive in and jutted up a little bit instead of sitting entirely flush. Swapping screws didn't help. The solution was to unscrew them and drive them in at a bit of an angle - perpendicular to the slightly curved surface of the back plate where the screw holes were, instead of fully vertical with respect to the ground the Macbook is sitting on. Doing it that way, the screws were easier to drive in and they all ended up flush in their holes. Didn't matter which screws they were. (I swapped a few around just to check after reading this.)

I discovered a great way of organizing the screws. I used an ice cube tray and added the screws in order, keeping the different kinds together. So when it came to reversing the steps, the screw order was an added control step to returning everything in its place.

The lower ones 50 to a package. I mark them w/ blue tape. Often if it's part like the fans, or the optical drive I'll tape the screws into/near the holes where they belong. I did this a lot especially w/ the bottom screws from MBPs until I'd done so many I knew exactly where the longer ones went.

@Will, in my case I had the same result as you did. As a reminder to myself the next time I need to open the computer, I put a dot of white paint on those two screw's head and a very, very thin ring of white on the very edge of each hole, that way I'll know they go into those two holes.

Actually the four screws on the bottom were not threaded all the way up. I didn't check to see if the thread gauge was the same on them, but it wasn't until I had about four screws out (I didn't take them out in the order that the bottom all came out first) that I noticed a difference. I then took out the rest of the bottom ones to see if they matched the two that were already out that weren't threaded to the top. They did. So I went under the assumption that those were all bottom screws and when I put it back together everything went fine with no resistance.

So there are three types of screws: Four for the bottom, three long ones as indicated and three others that might be slightly smaller than the bottom ones.

Although its more than a year since your contribution, I thought you might be amused to know that it is not just that the screws go in more easily when at an angle, Apple actually drilled and tapped the holes at a 15% angle. I too had tried to drive them in straight. An Apple "genius" - I was in for something else - clarified the design for me. It was done so that the screws lay flush on the angled part of the lower case. Nice design, but since Apple encourages DIY memory and drive changes, they could have mentioned this little ... trap.

Hey everyone, here's the very best way to PERFECTLY organize your screws AND keep track of the order of the procedure: Get a piece of plain corrugated cardboard and a pen (I like using a Sharpie). For EACH step of the disassembly, draw a simple diagram of the layout of the computer on the piece of cardboard, with dots or Xs where the screws are located. Right after you remove each screw from the computer, poke a hole in the cardboard in its corresponding diagram position with your screwdriver and place the screw in that hole. If there are other non-screw related parts to be removed, you can add notes below each step diagram to remind you of where they go or how they should be placed. This cardboard method is great not only because your screws will not go flying or get mixed up by accident if bumped, but each screw goes EXACTLY back where it came from and you can keep the cardboard as a template for future use if necessary!

During re-assembling (put the screws back in), it is important to note that the 3mm threaded holes are not completely vertical, but bent a little bit such that the hole direction is rectangular to the tapered surface. The force of the screwdriver must point towards the direction of the hole. Otherwise the screw gets jammed

Thanks Splash!!! I used your suggested method, and it was perfect: kept all my screws, and i was able to, very easily, put them back in their correct place. I greatly appreciated your feedback. Thank you for sharing!!

It's Oct. 2015, and the fan cost me about $10. it was the same brand/model...

SUNON MG62090V1-Q020-S99 .

SOME TRICKS -

1- no T6 screwdriver- was careful using needle nose players to loosen 2 screws protruding up, then use a small phillips to push real hard into the T6 slots, SLOWLY turn , also used a small flat head screwdriver (for eye glass repair) was able to grab thread on T6's, made a small mark with screw driver across the top so I could see when it started to turn.

2- no spudger -made one; cut a little strip 1/2" x 1 1/2" of plastic. couldn't get it to slide under plug, there's an edge where plug fits. so lifted old fan out, pulled upward on the plug it popped right out with very little effort. I used my home made spudger to push the new plug into place.

3- download free "Macs Fan Control" This is how I was alerted to the fan not working in the first place. Program shows temperature of all key components in the computer.

Watch the video first, read the entire tutorial and all the comments before you start, and spread a white towel on the floor so you can find screws when you drop them. Watch this first -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qiBxhA29e...

Please be aware that you CAN do this replacement with MUCH LESS work. I successfully replaced a trackpad (TP) in this model WITHOUT removing a lot of what is described here. I think i mainly removed the logic board (LB) anchor screws along the TP side and was then able to lever up the LB just enough to get the cable unplugged and snaked out. Followed the reverse and done. Maybe not for all, but it worked for me. // Re screws: i print out the images here of the multi-screws locations and then tape the screws in place on the print-out.

I will be buying a battery from you and using your instructions. I just installed a new CD/DVD using your instructions and 1) I feel like I owe you something and 2) Although more expensive, I have the confidence your battery will work. My current battery is the original with 1399 cycles in 7.2 yrs. A tech buddy had bought me a replacement and I installed it. I had just installed a new OS and the kernel_task went going nuts, using 90% of the CPU. Hours on the phone with Apple did not resolve the issue. On a whim, I put the old battery back in and Voila! But I cannot risk my battery swelling and going south on me. I am also going to buy your installation tools. Yeah, I already have them. But you can never have enough tools…or beer. And you don’t sell beer.

At first sight I was confused when I read the description at this step, 'cause it seemed that disconnecting the battery connector was optional, in order to eliminate static discharge. While it's a helpful advice in other circumstances (as mentioned as an example changing hard drives), when changing the battery it is not an option - you have to disconnect the battery connector.

It would have been better to mention the optional disconnecting recommendation in a side-note.

the fact that this step is optional can not be stressed enough. i tried disconnecting the battery and in the process it short circuited which now leaves me with an even more expensive problem than i had before when i just wanted to change hard drives (at least the new hard drive works fine..)

Excellent guide, it was as easy as a breeze to replace my battery. I can't believe I nearly followed Apple in their saying that this part was not user replaceable. Great job for this description, and many thanks. iFixIt is THE reference for Mac owners.

So - I have a weird comment about this. I wanted to make sure that I was getting the right model - so I opened up my laptop and then thought "well, why not just remove the battery while i'm in here, it's shot anyway". Though, I forgot about the stupid screws (Apple really did us over on that one!). Though I disconnected the battery connector and didn't bother to re-connect it when I was finished and just put the cover back on.

Here's the weird part - when I went to turn my laptop back on...MY BATTERY WAS RECOGNIZED...AND WORKING! I was under the impression that the connector "connects" the battery's charge to the laptop, but this just doesn't make sense! Plus, now my very dead battery is in "normal" condition according to the system report. I haven't worked for apple, but have about 5 years of IT experience and am baffled by this! I'm starting to think i've experience a miracle! Has this happened to anyone else?

I tried spudging the corner closer to the wires which was probably a bad idea. The corner broke off! I can't believe it was that brittle. So be careful. If it did it again, I'd aim for the corners AWAY from the wires or the sides themselves, though I seem to recall there not being much of a lip.

Beware of step 8. Screws strip extremely easily. For some reason, that are extremely tough to get out and the metal is extremely soft so you are likely to screw yourself over real quick even if you use the right screwdriver. Happened to me and now it's impossible for me to take the @$%# thing off so I have to return my HDD bay and deal with having a useless disc drive.

Yes, and I got stuck on step 8 for this simple task. Is there no way we can get the drive out while leaving the wireless/bluetooth board in place? I prefer to drill a small hole in the plastic of the board to reach the drive's screw underneath and find a way to slide it out towards the hard disk side.

I had the same thing happen with the 3.9 mm screw. To remove the drive afterwards I used a 1/16" drill bit to carefully remove the (stripped) screw head. I left most of the screw threads intact, and the remaining "post" is enough to hold the airport/bluetooth fixture in place with the one remaining screw. These are some seriously soft screws, folks, be careful!

Hmm. well, unfortunately after putting everything back together, my trackpad no longer works, and I can't login to my computer. removing the dual drive caddy and closing it back up returns trackpad functionality, but I really want the extra drive space. Anyone have any suggestions?

Does anyone know the part number of the 3.9mm screw? It got chewed up the second I tried to loosen it..had to get a 3.5mm drill bit and gently remove the head. I was able to remove the remain piece of the screw, and would of course like to replace this thing..

Well. I too stripped the head on the left side screw. First I used a cheap #000 screwdriver. Stripped the head and the driver. Not realizing just how bad I had stripped the screw I got a #0000 and the right one came out. I made sure to apply firm downward pressure to minimize slip. The left side was to far gone. So...

I broke the housing. Yep. I'm a brute.

Anyway. I rolled it up out of the case as if I had actually removed the screw. Only to realize I don't have a T6. [facepalm]. I've spent way too much time just getting that #0000. I'll order myself a nice kit for future 'repairs'.

Oh and yes, the bluetooth and wifi work just fine. The right screw and the tight fitting of the housing seem to keep it in place ok.

I too stripped the screw on the right, and while I tried a few basic things to remove the screw, eventually I drilled out the screw head so I could remove the airport/bluetooth housing. Only the head came off, enough to free the housing, but it sits pretty snugly on there with just the one screw and that's enough for me.

Hi, Dan. The Apple part numbers supplied were used to order exact replacements now in my MBP 15. I have also checked them against Apples official Screw Chart for the MBP 15. I am very sorry you have been supplied the wrong screws but the part numbers listed are correct.

Alright, Genius bar just made it worse, ended up taking a drill to it hoping to break the head off so I could pull it out bit it just wouldn't come off. In the end I pushed a flat screw driver down as hard as I could and It shifted.

I know many of you wont want to put a drill to your shiny (expensive) mac, but the screw is surrounded and strong so you wont break through or damage anything.

The only reason for removing these screws is so you can get access to the Torx screw beneath the Bluetooth/wireless board (ie the top left screw circled red in step 9). I Had the idea of drilling directly into the black wireless/Bluetooth plastic board directly above this top left Torx screw shown in step 9. I could then use a long thin Torx screwdriver to reach through the hole and unscrew it, without having to remove the stripped screws holding the wireless/Bluetooth board in place at all. Be careful drilling into the board(!), but worked perfectly for me. Once the Torx screws are removed, it just takes a bit of jiggling to carefully remove the optical drive out from under the board, and put the hd drive in.

If you're reading this before having stripped the two screws, I'd recommend not even trying to unscrew the Bluetooth board and just drill a hole in it, assuming you have steady hands. I'll try to upload a photo to show what I mean.

I’ll second this - seemed a bit daunting at first but with a stripped screw and no screw extractor my options were limited. Having weighed up the options and carefully studying the pictures I decided that Laurence’s idea was feasible (if not a little leftfield!). I carefully marked out an educated estimate of where the screw would be under the black wireless/Bluetooth plastic board (you can see it from the side so used this plus the images supplied here) and drilled, firstly with a 1.5mm to mark the spot and then with a larger 4mm. Obviously this needs to be done very carefully so you do not continue and drill into the torque 6 screw you are trying to get to, but once the hole was drilled my bit reached down to the screw and could *carefully* be lifted up and through the newly created hole. Once the screw has been removed, along with the other 2 torque 6 screws in this step, the optical drive / caddy will slide out as opposed to being lifted vertically out in the instructions, but this proved little hassle

Hello there, I'm looking for some help. I am planning on doing this "procedure". I have the 54 Bit Driver set from iFixIt. If I have to unscrew the 8.6 mm Phillips screw and 3.9 mm Phillips screw. What bits should I use from the 54 Bit Kit? The PH1, PH0, PH00, PH000? I really don't want to strip the screw, which one should I use?

Josh I would use the PH00 bit from the 54 Bit Kit. Apple use a different non standard screw head design to Phillips which does not have the cam-out geometry and uses a pointed tip. The PH0 and PH00 bits are a reasonable approximation. I have to say that even with the best match between the screwdriver and screw they may still strip as the original screws seem to be made of painted cheese. If that happens you could try using a tough steel small flat screwdriver bit to drill/scrape out a round hole in the screw head and then gently force in the next largest slotted bit. This has worked for me twice.

As a warning i had to take a near new refurbished mid 2012 MacBook Pro into Apple to have a missing/stripped bottom case screw repaired under warranty and in the process of taking it apart they stripped five more screws and damaged the LCD screen cable, upper case and keyboard, speaker, Bluetooth module and several other assemblies. It was all repaired properly under warranty but it took over 2 weeks and the only original parts I got back were the logic board and baseplate. Some of these MacBook Pro's are a real challenge and come with stuck and sometimes pre stripped screws from the factory. Take your time and remember Apple keep all the screws at genius bars, if you ask nicely and give the the Apple part number they are often happy to fit them for you. Good Luck!

All you need to unscrew the short screw (and don't screw up) is a soldering iron. You should apply heat to aluminum column located below the head of the screw. Loctite-like glue in thread loses its grip when heated, so you probably will unscrew that little bastard without any issues. It worked for me, even with semi-stripped head!

Siht. I screw up the screw too. And then I realize there are 24 comments in this step. Now I make 25 of it. That little fcuking 3.9mm...

Anyway, so I drilled that striped screw head with 3mm tip, totally striped that screw so seperated rim, removed Airport supports, there still 1mm of screw steam thingy, got rid of that using small nipper, put new screw in.

Use very, I mean very sharp even your finger bleed when touch the edge of small screw driver. Regular #0 or #00 driver will distroy your screw head.

Made same mistake here (rushed through the directions and didn't even notice the warning!). I completely stripped the smaller screw but I was able to get it out easily with an extractor drill bit, the kind readily available in hardware stores (Grabit Micro was the brand name here in the U.S.). Ordered a replacement screw from pbparts re the advice above (thanks for the part number!).

Stripped this one too. I think it was fixed in with Locktite. Had to buy a Grabit Micro to remove it. Started with the #1 but when I reversed the bit it wouldn't catch. Thought I would have to drill it out completely, but tried with the #2 and the hole drilling end of the bit caught in the hole I'd already drilled with the #1. If you're about to follow through these instructions I would make sure to have some Grabit drill bits or other stripped screw removal tools on hand before you start.

I have done it using an 1,5 mm cross slot screwdriver from a screwdriver set by LIHAO (I bought it at Amazon). First, ensure that the screwdriver is well fitted into the screw head, then press down and try to turn it(without forcing it!). If the screw does not turn easily, stop, take out the screw driver and repeat the process till the screw get loose. Be patient, take your time and keep in mind that your main priority is to preserve the heads of the cheese screws

I got it out with no trouble by using a Moody Phillips #2006 .100" (the one recommended by iFixit for this repair), and by using very firm pressure and very gentle rotation, checking at about an 1/8 turn to see if the screw was turning or stripping.

For what it's worth, on my 2011 MBP 17", the bluetooth/wireless unit was held down with two flat-head phillips screws; the one on the left, the 8.6 was attached to the metal clip just to the right of it in the picture. It came out very easily. The one on the right definitely had some kind of loctite adhesive, but eventually I got it free with firm, quick short twists. Didn't strip. Also, the torx screws on the superdrive were all phillips heads as well. Not sure if that's a 17" thing or what. Thanks!

Although these screws look like PH00 Philips heads, if you’ve got one of the iFixit toolkits, the best driver to use is the J000 or JIS000 driver. Unless the screws have been terribly stripped, it’ll pop them out effortlessly every time.

I took a different method with these screws. I removed the black coating from the head of the screw with a sewing needle and a small bit of acetone while using a magnifier. This got it right down to shiny metal inside which I believe helped make better contact with the Phillips bit. I also took a small file to the bit to sharpen it like new. These screws came right out for me with just this little bit of advance prep.

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I actually found this section to be the most difficult, the T6 screws are soft as butter, apply plenty of pressure when removing. The one towards the front of the laptop looking from the back is the most problematic.

Does anyone know where I can get replacements for these 3.5 mm T6 Torx screws without spending a fortune on the entire screw set? It looks like this site doesn't sell them and online searches have not turned up any sources either!

I had a hard time putting these screws back in with the HDD bracket. It looks like the bracket doesn't leave room for the bolt heads, so they go in at an angle. I tried for a while getting them lined up just right, but eventually gave up and now I'm pretty sure those T6 are cross-threaded into the aluminium. =( The original optical bay does have room for the bolt heads so they stay vertical.

What is the trick to getting these screws back in? I have been at it for a while and seems near impossible. Putting these ridiculously tiny screws back in has been by far the hardest part of the whole ordeal.

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Many thanks for this superb resource. My 4 year old had actually shoved a couple of coins into the drive. I would never have had the guts to replace it myself without your help - by far the best on the web!

For anyone who has stripped a screw in step 8 this note might make your day. I stripped the longer screw using a #00 bit. I then took a 1.5mm flat head bit from the iFixit screwdriver kit and rocked it along the line of the flat head into the stripped screw head, with some pressure a few times and that created enough of a depression to easily remove the screw. There was even enough purchase to reinstall it securely so no need to hunt down a replacement screw.

I'd need to know where I could find the connector between the optical drive and the logicboard. I put my hdd in a caddie to put it instead of the optical drive but my macbook keep disconnecting it. Already changed the caddie so I guess that the connector is faulty.

Anyone ? :)

Found it ! But iFixit you should put a link to the other tutorial when you mention the connector in step 11 :D

Right as rain! The comments were especially helpful, although so many stories about stripping screws had me concerned..but I used pressure, care, and voila… success without heartache! I made a template to keep track of the screws and it was very helpful. I did note my mounting bracket was held on by Phillips #00…reattaching was the hardest part, but that could have to do with the fact that I am a disabled Vietnam Vet (yeah, do the math). Thank you so much.

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